Bedford, a community of about 20,000 with a strong sense of identity, is famous for its fancy houses and easy commute to the rest of HRM.

When Kelly Regan became MLA for Bedford-Birch Cove last year, she was ready to handle overcrowded -- and in some cases aging -- schools, underserved recreation facilities and contentious plans for waterfront development. But not the bears.

“They didn’t give us any tips on dealing with bears,” she says of her legislature training. Last year, a big area problem was disappearing cats.

That turned out to be connected to the coyotes moving in and now there are problems with bears, too, with one spotted near Prince’s Lodge in June.

“They joke at caucus that I’m the critic for coyotes and ticks,” Regan says.

The mother of three, who has lived in Bedford since 1994, says despite that, it’s a great spot to raise a family.

“About five years ago, I was driving somewhere with my daughters in the backseat and one of them said, ‘You know mom, Bedford just has everything,’” Regan says.

The former journalist ran for provincial office in the hopes she could do her “small part” to improve life in Bedford.

She knew what she was getting into with the demanding job of a politician — her husband, Geoff Regan, is the MP for Halifax West, which includes Bedford.

A new four-pad rink on the Hammonds Plains Road will bolster the area’s recreational options and ease the pressure on getting ice time, she says.

The currently quiet waterfront could undergo major changes over the next 20 years, according to the Bedford Waterfront Design Study unveiled in June.

It would develop the area into a space like Alderney Landing in Dartmouth, with a library, performance space, restaurants, a ferry terminal and a mix of residential and commercial buildings.

Some residents at the public meeting discussing the plan thought it was a step forward for the community, while others argued the lack of green spaces would cut people off from the water.